In their second Group B match of the SAFF Women’s Championship, Nepal completely dominated the Maldives 11-0 on Monday at the Dasharath Stadium in Kathmandu, with five goals from Rekha Paudel and a hat-trick from Preeti Rai.
Amisha Karki, Anita KC, and Sabita Rana Magar were also targeted for Nepal.
The margin of victory ranks fourth overall and third for Nepal in the SAFF Women’s competition. In the 2010 SAFF Women’s Championship group stage in Bangladesh, they had defeated Pakistan 12-0 and Afghanistan 13-0. With an 18-0 victory over Bhutan in the 2010 edition, India now holds the record for the competition’s largest victory.
The victory over the Maldives also makes it abundantly evident that coach Rajendra Tamang’s team, who were beaten to a 0-0 stalemate by Bhutan in their first game, is still in the running to win their first title after making it to the finals in five of the previous six.
Coach Tamang rested star attacker Sabitra Bhandari, who arrived in Kathmandu from France on Monday morning, and captain and goalkeeper Anjila Tumbapo Subba, making five changes to the team that played a goalless draw against Bhutan. Against the Maldives, Nisha Thokar, Bimala BK, Bimala Chaudhary, Rekha Paudel, and second-choice goalkeeper Anjana Rana Magar started.
Hira Bhujel and Dipa Shahi will miss the remainder of the SAFF championship after being carted off during the Bhutan match owing to injuries.
After losing to Bhutan for the first time in their SAFF history, Nepali women were under a lot of strain.
Additionally, Bhandari’s presence was greatly missed, and there were concerns about Nepal’s ability to defeat the Maldives.
However, Paudel did not allow Bhandari’s absence to depress the crowd once more.
From the beginning, Nepal was completely in control, forcing the Maldives to mount a desperate defense.
Rai’s low shot from the left, which amazingly beat two players before slipping past Maldives goalkeeper Aminath Leeza in the fifth minute, initiated the goal rush as soon as the pressure paid off.
In order to prevent Nepal from scoring further goals, Leeza was awakened by the early setback and gave it her all, denying Paudel twice and Rashmi Ghising once.
However, the floodgates were abruptly opened when Sabita Rana Magar’s well-timed left-footed long shot in the 29th minute undid Leeza.
Paudel scored twice before halftime, first by tapping in a pass from Sabita in the 42nd minute and then by flicking a cross from Ghising in the 32nd. He smelled blood.
After the break, the goal fest went on.
Three minutes after the restart, after Aminath Zaahiya failed to clear her first effort from a tight angle, Paudel completed her hat-trick by hitting the net’s roof from close range.
Saru Limbu, who had created Nepal’s fifth goal, let Paudel through with a deft ball to give her her fourth in the 63rd minute.
After Paudel cut back for her, Rai struck a screamer from the edge of the box in the 65th minute for her individual second.
After coming off the bench and racing into replacement Anita Basnet’s ball, which was partially fortunate due to a deflection from Hawwa Haneefa, Anita KC scored Nepal’s eighth goal in the 69th second.
After KC set her up, Paudel scored her fifth goal of the match in the 78th minute.
After MSB Ahmed Ali handled the ball inside the area, Rai earned her hat-trick in the 87th minute with a penalty kick. A minute later, replacement Karki completed a major victory by converting a pass from Sabita.
Nepal attempted 35 shots in all, 22 of which were on target, compared to the Maldives’ zero.
“Our first game was a surprise. We were instructed by the coach to try to score more goals by playing an attacking game. During the presentation, player of the match Paudel stated, “I am happy that I was able to score, and our objective was clear.”
It required teamwork. I’m grateful to my teammates,” she continued.
Despite sharing four points with Bhutan, who earlier in the day crushed Sri Lanka 4-1, Nepal surged to the top of the Group B standings on goal differential.
On Thursday, Nepal will play their last group match against Sri Lanka. Sri Lanka is currently in third place with three points.
The Maldives will battle for pride against Bhutan on Thursday after collapsing after two consecutive defeats.
Group B includes the tournament’s most successful team, five-time champion India, and the reigning champions, Bangladesh, who defeated Nepal in the 2022 final to end India’s resolute hold on the SAFF throne in the previous edition.
India has already advanced to the final four after defeating Pakistan 5-2 in their first game. After a humiliating draw with Pakistan, Bangladesh has one point and will play India in their last group match on Wednesday.
